ITALIAN INHERITANCE LAW

May 02, 2021

In this article you will find:

• Introduction to Italian Inheritance Law (also known as Italian Succession Law)
• Required documents for the Statement of Succession or Declaration of Succession
• Key points to keep in mind when preparing the documents

Italian Inheritance Law (also known for Italian Succession Law) is primarily ruled by the Italian Civil Law and by the Regulation (EU) No. 650/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 July 2012.

Generally speaking, Succession under Italian Law is a procedure to transfer all assets and liabilities to the heirs and it will define the share of inheritance to each party.

Type of Succession in Italy

There are basically two types of succession:

1. The Testamentary succession
2. The Legitimate succession (for legitimate heirs)

Statement of Succession or Declaration of Succession

The first step to be taken after a demise is to start with the “Dichiarazione di Successione” (in English, Statement of Succession or Declaration of Succession). In order to carry out this procedure, it is required to gather the following documents*:

1. Death certificate – Certificato di morte
2. Certificate of last residence of the deceased
3. Self-certification of the deceased’s family status
4. Self-certification of the family status of the heirs
5. Cadastral records of all the deceased’s real estate properties – Visure catastali (including documents concerning modifications/changes of such properties)
6. A deed where it is indicated all heirs, the type of succession and their property regime – Atto di notorietà dell’erede
7. Copy of the will authenticated by a notary (if any)
8. Self-assessment statement of all mortgage and cadastral taxes with relative payment receipts**
9. Urban destination declaration
10. Copy of the loan agreement (if any)
11. Documents attesting any liabilities (if any)
12. Bank statement certifying the presence of any bank accounts on behalf of the deceased
13. Receipt of all funeral expenses incurred in case of inheritance tax
14. Declarations of waiver of inheritance (if any)

The Statement of Succession has to be submitted within 12 months from the day of the death, and it must be kept in mind that some of the above documents may not be easy to gather.

The declaration of succession can only be submitted electronically by the authorized subjects such as CPAs or CAF offices. The declaration must be completed and forwarded through the Italian Revenue Agency website by submitting the declaration of succession. Remember that the interested party is also required to pay the mortgage (and its taxes), cadastral taxes, stamp duties, and any other special taxes.

*When gathering all the documents, it is important to check the latest version of the required documents.

**If you are not familiar with Italian taxes, calculating it by yourself may be difficult, therefore, it is better to ask for a professional support in this phase.

You maybe also interested in:

• Frequently asked questions on Italian Inheritance Law

Yuu Shibata

She is a Legal Counsel and she holds a Ph.D in Law (University of Bologna). She is specialized in European Union Law and she is the Head of the Japanese Desk and Spanish Desk. She is mother tongue Japanese and Spanish and speaks fluently Italian and English.

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ON ITALIAN INHERITANCE LAW